Section: KXAN (USA)
Lawyer: Coronavirus restrictions hamper MH17 defense case
SCHIPHOL, Netherlands (AP) — A defense lawyer for a suspect in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over eastern Ukraine nearly six years ago said Monday that coronavirus restrictions have seriously hampered efforts to prepare the case. Sabine ten Doesschate, a Dutch lawyer representing Russian suspect Oleg Pulatov, said flight bans and...
On WWI treaty’s centenary, Hungary says its ‘curse’ must go
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary’s president on Thursday stressed the need for mutual respect between Hungary and neighboring countries where some 2 million ethnic Hungarians live following a post-World War I peace treaty signed exactly 100 years ago. At the same time, Janos Ader spoke of Hungarians’ “right” to keep unaltered their...
EU says Russia should not yet rejoin G7, despite Trump plan
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union on Tuesday joined a growing chorus of members of the Group of Seven major economic powers to insist that Russia must not be allowed back into the fold, after U.S. President Donald Trump said that he plans to invite the country to a G7 summit next fall. Trump said Saturday that he is postponing next month’s...
Kremlin: Trump tells Putin about idea for summit with Russia
MOSCOW (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump called Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday to tell him about his proposal to convene an international summit that would involve Russia, the Kremlin said. Trump said Saturday he will postpone until the fall a meeting of the G7 leading industrialized nations that he had planned to hold next month, and...
Russian general chafes at “provocative” NATO drills
MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian military on Monday accused the U.S. and its NATO allies of conducting “provocative” military drills near the nation’s borders, a statement that reflected simmering Russia-NATO tensions. Col.-Gen. Sergei Rudskoi of the Russian General Staff said Russia has sent a formal letter to NATO proposing to scale down each...
With masks and gloves, Ukraine’s priests return to duties
IVANO-FRANKIVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Wearing a white biohazard suit, a face shield and a blue mask over his mouth and nose, the Rev. Yaroslav Rokhman is hard to recognize as a priest when he visits terminally ill patients at a Ukrainian care center. But his words still bring comfort to the dying. Rokhman, a clergyman in the Ukrainian Greek Catholic...
UN adopts new voting procedure during COVID-19 pandemic
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly adopted a new voting procedure Friday for the upcoming election of new members of the Security Council aimed at preventing a large gathering and ensuring social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of meeting in the horseshoe-shaped assembly chamber at U.N. headquarters overlooking New...
1,000 protest Belarusian president seeking another term
MINSK, Belarus (AP) — About 1,000 protesters denouncing authoritarian Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s seeking of another term in an upcoming election have held the largest opposition demonstration of the year in the capital Minsk. Many of the demonstrators carried slippers as a symbol of protest leader Sergei Tikhanovsky’s...
Ukraine to investigate leaked tapes with ex-president, Biden
MINSK, Belarus (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Wednesday that prosecutors have opened a criminal inquiry into leaked tapes that allegedly feature the country’s former leader discussing conditions for a $1 billion loan with former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden. The tapes, which are yet to be authenticated, were released...
Russia says it scales down war games amid pandemic
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s foreign minister said Tuesday that Moscow has scaled down its military drills amid the coronavirus pandemic. Sergey Lavrov said that the Russian military also has decided not to conduct any war games near the country’s borders with NATO member nations during the outbreak. Russia-West relations have sunk to...
